List of best South Australian films of past 35 years sparks high drama
A LIST of the best South Australian films of all time was always going to cause a rift around the dinner table.
A LIST of the best South Australian films of all time was always going to cause a rift around the dinner table.
It was hotly contested on advertiser.com.au and on social media, too, as it happened.
Last weekend, to coincide with the 2013 Adelaide Film Festival, The Advertiser asked an expert panel of judges to rank the best South Aussie films of all time.
On the panel were veteran critic Margaret Pomeranz, News Corp. Australia national film writer Leigh Paatsch and The Advertiser's film writer Penny Debelle.
The judges scored each film individually, to give the film an overall score out of 10.
The impressive list comprised some of the most iconic films in Australian cinema, including Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) and Gallipoli (1981) and Bruce Beresford's Boer War drama Breaker Morant (1980).
MORE: See the list of Best SA films, watch the trailers and add your comments
Tell us what you think: Did the panel get it right? What films would you have liked to see on the list? Comment below.
But none moved the judges more than Phillip Noyce's dramatic re-telling of the story of three Aboriginal girls who walk 2400km along the rabbit proof fence to return home after being taken from their communities.
"A really important film for Australia," Pomeranz said of Rabbit Proof Fence (2002) in her comments.
As expected, the list prompted a strong reaction among readers online. Although, much of the discussion centred not films that made the list, but favourites that were missed off.
"Very surprised not to see Black and White on this list; a great evocation of the period at the city, but more importantly put under the spotlight an egregious miscarriage of justice," reader Mark wrote on advertiser.com.au
Starring Scottish actor Robert Carlyle (Trainspotting), Black and White (2002) tells the story of the landmark 1950s trial of Max Stuart, an Aboriginal man convicted on questionable evidence of the murder of a nine year old girl near Ceduna.
Fellow reader Les wrote; "They are all great films, I enjoyed most of them but what about Blue Fin, filmed at Streaky Bay, SA? What about Sweet Talker, filmed at Beachport SA starring Brian Brown?"
"These are really good movies too," Les wrote.
Other reader-nominated suggestions included The Fourth Wish (1976) starring John Meillon, The Sundowners (1960), Struck by Lightning (1990) starring Garry McDonald and the 2006 drama 2.37 by Murali K. Thalluri and starring Teresa Palmer in her break-out role.
Some readers accidentally missed the brief and put forward a number of classic Australian films not filmed in South Australia, including The Castle, Romper Stomper and Crocodile Dundee.